The Birds
by Sybil Rowan
Summary: Short piece on Doctor J’s musings over the Tallgeese. He also gets an idea for a future Gundam and the pilot by watching birds.


Title: The Birds

Author: Sybil Rowan

Pairing(s)/Characters: None/ Doctor J

Rating: K

Summary: Short piece on Doctor J's musings over the Tallgeese. He also gets an idea for a future Gundam by watching birds.

Warnings: None really.

Author's Notes: Last one of the five scientists stories. This one does lightly reference the original Gundam series with White Base and the Zabis, but not anything that should throw someone off. I also, made up the part about Geese and the Tallgeese name. See how it flies... no pun intended!

Disclaimer: Gundam Wing is owned by Bandai Sunrise Entertainment.

Beta Reader: My husband, WingedPanther73!

Date Written: July 23, 2009 (8:03am)

Word Count: 838

"Now I'm telling you, Jiro. The answer is 'no' to the vernier rocket boost," Groeteschele said, crossing his arms and giving me a sharp look.

"As it stands now, no mortal could withstand the g-forces," Howard agreed, waving his hand at the behemoth, white Gundam standing before us. I looked at him and couldn't repress my smirk.

"Then find me a god to sit in that cockpit. After all, Howard, it's your job to find a test pilot among the Alliance."

"The Tallgeese is getting too tough for the men to handle." Howard now glared at me, but Groeteschele gave me a sly smile. He waited to see who was going to win this argument.

"Well then, I guess we'll have to find a way to toughen the men." I turned around at that tsking noise and saw frowns on Hafez and Ow-Yang's faces. Even Solzhenitsyn looked uneasy. That was to be expected.

It was Solzhenitsyn that stepped forward and handed me the clipboard with the vernier rocket test results for the day. "Please remember, Doctor Jiro, that the person you put in the cockpit will be flesh and blood no matter what. To put a machine inside would be a monstrous concept that would make all of us uncomfortable."

"Of course," I snapped at him and waved the clipboard away. "You misunderstand what I'm trying to achieve. To make soulless killing machines disgusts me as much as you. What I'm reminding you is that we are building something more than a machine. We needed to manufacture a mobile suit with the ability to select an extraordinary pilot for itself."

All of them were gaping at me now. Professor Groeteschele stepped forward and crossed his arms. "I think I know what you're getting at, Jiro."

"It sounds a little mad to me," Howard said.

"What good would a Gundam be if any average pilot was at the controls? It would be an overgrown paperweight, I say! The pilot is the real key to winning a battle, the mobile suit should test them to see if they're worthy to battle. One hundred years ago only the most talented pilots on White Base and among the Zabis were given the privilege to pilot a Gundam. If the Alliance had their way, anybody would be put in the cockpit of a Gundam. That would be a sin," I said, stamping my cane on the steel floor. The echo made them flinch.

"I see what you're saying now." Howard's face still looked incredulous. I looked over my shoulder to see I had converted Ow-Yang, Hafez, and Solzhenitsyn; they were nodding. "Fine, but I have the final say-so on this. Dial it back by ten percent and hopefully I can find someone. This thing has picked up the name 'widow-maker' around Lake Victoria so I'm having problems finding you a god."

"Don't worry. Someday, someone will tame this beast."

I turned and walked towards the hangar-bay doors; it would be Professor Groeteschele's job to reprogram the vernier rockets. It was a beautiful, vermilion sunset at Lake Victoria. Several snow-white bird walked around the edge of the water, some waded into the cooling water.

Geese. Howard had adapted the Tallgeese name from our official, Alliance project codename 'White Goose.' Of all the birds to name a Gundam after, why geese? Howard had said they were kind of an unofficial mascot for the military academy located on the other side of the lake. I had to admit, they were agile on the water and very defensive when threatened.

The loud honking caught my attention. I looked up and watched a flock flap across the sky. High above, I saw a core fighter streak over them. My eyes drifted back to the hangar bay as the barest kernel of an idea started to germinate in my mind. This idea was too big to just throw to the Alliance.

What if a core fighter and a Gundam could be combined? What about a transformable Gundam? Not only that, one day I would have to build the perfect Gundam pilot. One that was a god of war worthy of piloting such a craft.

End.


End file.
